NB Chapter 1

Prologue. Northwest Boundary.

"Gale!"

Magnolia's voice, which should have been coming from her room where she was sleeping, rang out from above his head. Gale, who had been strolling through the garden, snapped his head up.

The first thing he saw were a couple of butterflies that resembled sunlight. Below them, something like fragments of sunlight sparkled, and suddenly Magnolia appeared in midair.

Gale startled and caught Magnolia as she fell toward him with his arms spread wide. Shocked and breathing heavily, Gale momentarily lost his balance and staggered.

He quickly shifted his center of gravity backward, and his back collided with the ground. Before he could even groan from the sharp pain shooting up his spine, Gale quickly checked on Magnolia in his arms. Her face, still drowsy with sleep, was calm.

Whew. Gale exhaled a sigh of relief and ran his hand through his hair, muttering in disbelief.

"You're probably the only person who uses teleportation magic so recklessly, Aster..."

"Ahaha. What's the big deal~"

Magnolia burst into laughter with both hands placed on his chest.

Gale looked up at Magnolia with dazed eyes. Magnolia was the one who had just woken up, but he seemed to be the one still caught in a dream.

When Magnolia met that gaze head-on, her laughter gradually faded. She cleared her throat awkwardly, feeling inexplicably embarrassed.

Those eyes examining her so carefully and thoroughly looked like those of someone who had lived in darkness deep within a cave and had stepped outside for the first time to see the night sky filled with countless stars.

"Why, why are you looking at me like that?"

Magnolia stammered without realizing it, flustered.

"You..."

Gale carefully reached out his hand. Just before touching Magnolia's cheek, his hand hesitated.

It felt like she would scatter and disappear the moment he touched her. Gale spoke in a dreamy voice.

"I can't believe that I'm here beside you."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Magnolia's large eyes crinkled halfway as a smile bloomed fully across her face, drawing out her words. Following that movement, her platinum hair fluttered.

The brilliant morning sunlight poured down on Gale along with Magnolia.

For a moment, his chest ached and his breath caught. He felt like tears might come. Whenever he saw Magnolia's smiling face like this, he truly felt that he was making her happy.

Gale mustered his courage and slowly moved his hand, stroking the corner of Magnolia's eye with the back of his fingers. Her eyelashes, like dandelion seeds, tickled his heart.

The smile that always turned back dazzlingly bright whenever he called out "Mag—." From a very long time ago, he had wished that only this smile would be all of Magnolia.

The scene that Gale had vowed to protect with his entire life spread out completely before his eyes.

Chapter 1

—Your beloved Rosemary Clark.

Having finished her letter this way, Rosemary touched her neck, feeling embarrassed for no reason.

Should I erase it? Will he think it's ridiculous? Hanging her pen over the inkwell, Rosemary hesitated for a moment.

She remembered him personally seeing her off on the entrance ceremony day a few months ago. Thinking of how he had fretted over whether she might be bullied or harassed at the academy made her smile bashfully.

No. He would be happy.

'Don't worry, Father.'

It had been an impulsive answer, unable to bear that overwhelming concern. The moment the words left her mouth, Rosemary felt an emotion close to fear.

But contrary to that regret, the person she faced smiled brilliantly and radiantly, as if truly happy.

'Yes, Rosemary.'

Just then, the spring breeze gently flew in through the window and tickled Rosemary's ear. She reflexively brushed it away, and a pale pink petal fell onto her palm from her light brown hair.

Her heart fluttered. Even such a trivial thing made her smile naturally. Rosemary placed the petal in the middle of the letter and folded it.

Really, it had always been like this since meeting him, but lately she had been especially, truly happy.

The childhood filled only with hardships—shivering from cold, hunger, and loneliness while begging on the streets—had somehow been forgotten.

Rosemary had gained a warm home and family. She had even entered the academy, which she thought would be impossible. She had a friend who approached her first, greeting her and asking to be close.

To the person who had given her such happiness, she had called him 'Father' for the first time, and rather than being troubled, he had miraculously been happy together with Rosemary.

Nothing could break this feeling.

Knock knock. Someone tapped on Rosemary's door. Rosemary reflexively looked outside the window.

The petals scattering in the wind were as vivid as stars embroidering the night sky. The clock hands had already passed ten o'clock in the evening. Rosemary was surprised and put down her pen, rising from her desk.

"Eek, it's the dorm supervisor."

Wait, but today's the weekend?

Rosemary, who had paused while standing up, remembered that there were no lights-out rules on weekends.

Then who was knocking on her door at this late hour?

'Could it be Trudy?'

Remembering her first friend's greeting that she wouldn't go home this weekend and would come visit if she was bored, the tension melted away like snow.

But mixed dormitories are against regulations. What if the supervisor catches us at this late hour?

Rosemary roughly pushed the letter into a corner and tiptoed across the room in a hurry.

"Trudy! It's already past ten o'clock..."

Half pleased and half worried, Rosemary flung open the door.

The first thing she saw was long platinum hair glinting faintly. It was the color of moonlight floating in the middle of the night sky.

There's hair like this in the world too, Rosemary thought blankly, and when she met the other person's eyes, she felt as if her breath had stopped.

"Rosemary Clark?"

The girl quietly called Rosemary's name as if singing. Rosemary couldn't answer.

"Are you Rosemary Clark?"

"Yes... Yes. Yes, I'm Rosemary Clark..."

When the other person asked again in a louder voice, Rosemary finally answered reflexively.

At Rosemary's answer, the girl smiled, her eyelids half-closing. It was a laugh like the sound of pretty marbles rolling.

The girl, who had been standing with her hands behind her back, entered the room and closed the door. She wore the same uniform as Rosemary, but somehow it looked awkward. She appeared younger than Rosemary, who was a new student herself.

Rosemary snapped back to her senses.

"No, wait. Why are you just..."

"Do you know someone named Zycklint Kothen?"

"Pardon?"

As if she couldn't hear Rosemary's flustered words, the girl asked again softly in that same marble-rolling voice.

"Do you know someone named Zycklint Kothen? She's someone very precious to me."

"...I'm sorry, but that's the first time I've heard that name."

"Really? You've never heard the name Zycklint either?"

The girl immediately became dejected and asked earnestly. Her hands were still clasped behind her back.

Cold sweat ran down Rosemary's back. Am I dreaming right now? Good heavens, that face...

Rosemary stared blankly at the girl's face again, then shook her head, thinking it couldn't be.

But what if it was? For a moment, Rosemary was startled with fear. Rosemary, whose hands were trembling, gently placed her hand on the girl's shoulder.

"I'm hearing it for the first time. I don't know who you are, but it's late, so please leave..."

"That's unfortunate."

"Pardon?"

The girl pushed Rosemary toward the center of the room with one hand.

"Really unfortunate."

Suddenly the girl stepped close to Rosemary.

Beyond the muttering voice, she heard the sound of metal, and before she knew it, a pale face was right in front of Rosemary's nose. Startled, Rosemary reflexively tried to push her shoulders away.

At that moment, a few drops of blood suddenly appeared on the girl's face. Rosemary unconsciously wiped away the blood drops rolling down her soft skin. The girl's brow furrowed.

Rosemary soon realized that the blood was flowing from her own mouth. Before she could even grasp the situation, she saw the sword embedded in her stomach.

"Huk..."

She tried to scream, but the moment she opened her mouth, excruciating pain shot up as if her insides were being chopped into pieces.

The sword spurted blood. The girl grimaced and pulled away from Rosemary along with the sword.

Rosemary felt all the strength drain from her body as she collapsed to the floor, gasping. It was blazingly hot and painful, like a red-hot branding iron being forcibly thrust into her stomach.

She barely managed to pull herself together with her strengthless body and looked up at the girl. She was looking down at Rosemary with an expressionless face, as if she had never smiled.

'Ah, I'm going to die. She's going to kill me.'

Rosemary trembled with fear and clutched her stomach with both hands. Her vision became blurry, then clear, then continued to repeat. Like her dizzy vision, her head spun round and round. Rosemary couldn't think of anything.

She was scared. She was just scared.

"Please... save... save me..."

When she raised her head, amid the confusion mixed like a mirage, only the green eyes shone brightly. Or were they green? They seemed red, and they seemed silver too.

Rosemary pleaded toward the stars embroidering the night sky.

"Please save me..."

But sadly, that wish was not granted.

Magnolia confirmed that Rosemary Clark had stopped breathing.

Snap. There was a sound like something breaking. It was the sound of the voice that had been whispering endlessly stopping, bringing silence. The dormitory room was eerily quiet.

Magnolia was startled by that silence so abruptly poured over her. Her consciousness, which had been submerged in a strange floating sensation, rose to the surface with rough breaths. As the blocked blood flowed from gripping the sword so tightly, her palm tingled.

Was that why? Her fingertips were trembling mercilessly.

"...Zycklint?"

Heavy silence returned. She could no longer hear Zycklint's voice that had been whispering incessantly in her ear since before entering the room. The sudden stillness was so awkward that goosebumps rose.

Magnolia looked down at her trembling hands, then quietly clasped them together. They were ice cold.

The end?

Is this the end?

The window across from her rattled. Suddenly, it opened and a large man stepped inside.

The man, wearing a dark robe pulled up over his face, indifferently surveyed the carnage in the room. Then, seeing Magnolia standing upright in the middle of it all, he hurriedly walked into the room.

"Mag."

Gale grabbed Magnolia's shoulders. When the robe's hood was pulled back, dark ash-colored hair tickled before Magnolia's eyes.

"Mag, breathe!"

Only after hearing those words did Magnolia realize she wasn't breathing.

"Cough, huk!"

Her breath burst out desperately with several small coughs. Gale urgently embraced Magnolia. He patted her gasping shoulders and stroked her back.

At the warmth that swept away the cold air clinging to her body, Magnolia instinctively burrowed into Gale's embrace. Gale hugged Magnolia back, pressing her head against himself as if pushing it toward him.

The sound of a beating heart filled her empty ears. Gradually her breathing stabilized.

Then Rosemary Clark came into Magnolia's view. She was lying down looking at the ceiling, and a sword was embedded in her chest.

—It's a very familiar scene. Similar to Zycklint's end, which had continuously tormented Magnolia...

Crack. Her teeth grated harshly like flint. The bloodstains scattered on the floor rose like flames, engulfing Magnolia in rage. Once again, hatred blazed with a roaring sound.

She seemed to hear Zycklint's voice again, which had been inseparable from her ears until just moments ago.

'My beloved daughter, hurry now.'

Magnolia shook off the arms that were holding her. Since her breathing had returned to normal, Gale obediently let go. Magnolia staggered closer to Rosemary.

The silver sword embedded in her chest shone even more brilliantly as it drank the red blood.

It seemed like the sword was telling her that Zycklint was pleased. At that, Magnolia was able to smile, even if just a little.

This sword had been Zycklint's sword. It was also the sword that had taken her life.

She seemed to see before her eyes Zycklint's back figure, always carrying a sword at her waist. The pale red hair that had fluttered along with that clear sound when she drew her sword.

At the longing and sorrow that surged instantly, Magnolia clutched her constricting chest.

Last autumn.

Magnolia, who had returned home late in the evening, had to see her mother lying inside the house with her own sword embedded in her chest. Zycklint had been murdered. The wax-like face stained with blood was still vivid.

At that time, there was nothing Magnolia could do. Other than holding her hand and crying, nothing... there was nothing she could do.

What Zycklint left for Magnolia like this were incomprehensible words.

'That bastard has exactly one daughter, just like me. Of course, my daughter is prettier.'

'Mother...'

'My beloved daughter... you know what Mother means, don't you?'

At the time, Magnolia had no idea what she meant.

But now Magnolia knew exactly what Zycklint had said and what she wanted.